What is this Twitch that streamers talk about, how to earn money Twitch, how does Twitch work and how does Twitch make money? Most streamers nowadays ask this basic question: how much do small Twitch streamers make?
To answer all these, we need to know the meaning behind the name Twitch and what it’s used for, who benefits from it and who uses it the most!
What is Twitch?
Twitch is a world-famous live streaming platform among gamers, other lifestyle casters and those who support building community online and live!
However, Twitch is mostly used by gamers to communicate, challenge and follow their favorite streamers live.
Twitch is an American streaming service provider operated by Twitch Interactive which is a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc.
Twitch has launched on June 6th, 2011; 9 years ago and currently has 9.24 million active streamers by December 2020.
As of January 2022, Twitch had 2.8 million average viewers which shows how famous Twitch streaming is, especially within the younger gaming generations.
Most people are interested in knowing how does Twitch works and this is for you! Even the small Twitch streamers earn through Twitch and if you want to know how much do small twitch streamers make keep reading…
And if you love gaming and want to know how to earn money Twitch, this is the best place to get started and to know how does Twitch works.
If you know what you want, building and becoming a Twitch streamer is easy with a few important steps that we will be discussed below in this blog!
Who is Twitch for?
The primary focus in Twitch is video games and the players. So basically Twitch is for video gamers and streamers.
And if you want to start small you might be wondering how much do small Twitch streamers make and how to earn money Twitch? Twitch can make more money than you think,
So how does Twitch make money? Streamers mostly earn money through subscriptions and Twitch partnerships. For example, the platform’s biggest hit ‘Ninja’ has 11+ million followers and earns over $500,000 per month.
How Does Twitch Works: Step by step guide for beginners
Step 1: Create a Twitch account
There are only three ways to set up a Twitch Account. So if you want to know how does Twitch works you need to know the basics first.
Since Twitch is about live streaming, they are pretty cautious about their guideline and safety. Hence you need to read and agree with the Twitch Community Guidelines before proceeding.
Then sign-up and complete the form ( if you are using a desktop this is straightforward and if you are using a mobile download the Twitch app). Enable two-factor authentication and you are done!
Step 2: Select a good software
Streaming comes with a bit of technical side, but don’t worry as there is much easy and user-friendly software in the market such as OBS Studio, Streamlabs OBS, XSplit and vMix. You could also find other Twitch software guidelines here!
Step 3: Prepare your hardware
This includes everything you will need for streaming! You will need a computer, console or a smartphone, a microphone and a camera and additional streaming gear such as lighting, a green screen, game capture card, stream deck and a good quiet place to stream!
Step 4: Something to stream
Before you start, you will need to know what you want to stream live! Games or something you love talking about, a lifestyle or anything else that might interest your viewers.
Step 5: Step up your stream settings
To set up your streaming platform go through Twitch set-up guidelines. Twitch has some basic if you find all the numbers hard and they help to get you started easily through Getting Started Guidelines.
Step 6: Additional add-ons/tools
You can skip this step until you are familiar with streaming. But to get more followers and viewers you will need to add additional Twitch tools and add-ons.
Step 7: Getting the viewership
Most streamers are afraid that getting followers is a hard job! But there are few tips to get your follower count up and that keep talking and keep streaming, socialize as much as possible, discord with your friends if you are gaming, multistream and never-give-up!
The above are simple and basic steps to getting started on how to earn money Twitch and to know how does Twitch works!
If you have come this far then you are a true believer and want to start your Twitch journey.
Then your next question would be how much do small Twitch streamers make and how does Twitch make money? Well, the next bits are about how to earn from Twitch!
How To Earn Money From Twitch?
Making money via Twitch is a simple task if you know how to circle your viewers.
Most new streamers want to know how much do small twitch streamers make and if you are a gamer like Asmongold and want to stream your gaming experience then you are on the right track to be a millionaire just like Asmongold by only earning via streaming through Twitch.
Game streamer Asmongold knew how valuable the video game industry had become and he put his hobby into his career by entertaining his followers with Twitch live streaming while making his net worth of $2.5million last year!
Other streamers like Ninja, the top in the streamers’ list with 16M followers, shroud with 8.9M and summit1g with 5.8M followers who are the top three Twitch influencers which started as small and knew how to earn money twitch!
So How Much Do Small Twitch Streamers Make?
- NICKMERCS – $27,744 annual
- HASANABI – $20,157 annual
- XQCOW – $17,533 annual
- TOMMYINNIT – $16,419 annual
- IBAI – $4,495 annual
How To Earn Money Twitch:
Select your user type:
There are three types of Twitch users.
- Everyday Twitch users
- Twitch Affiliates
- Twitch Partners.
Depending on which streamer type you choose, the money you earn will differ. This is the basic way to know how does Twitch works. Apart from these, you can also select from the stream type you will be following:
- Variety Streamers – which streams multi-platforms,
- One-game streamers – who play only one game they are good at,
- Up-and-coming Streamers – who are budget-friendly, Community bonding and scalable.
The last set of streamers are Larger Streamers who are mostly influencers who focused on brand awareness, cross-platform promotions and traffic and timed-promotions.
So selecting your gig is important to know how to earn money Twitch!
To calculate how much you will be earning the Twitch Media Value Estimator will help you to analyze your earnings. With this, you will be able to calculate your future performance and evaluate how much you will need to stream to get more viewers and earn.
Twitch Channel Analytics is the perfect way to understand how this works as it gives you the basic guidelines! Also, you can use this to calculate the estimated media value by your channel to plan your future streaming progress!
Following are some earning opportunities from Twitch:
Twitch Affiliate: Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is the best way to earn money online and these Affiliate links are available for Twitch as well. So if you ask how to earn money Twitch the answer is selecting the Affiliate programs to insert the links into your videos.
So if you are a gamer sign in with some gaming product Affiliates and earn easy money while streaming your favorite game!
If you want to know how much do small twitch streamers make through Affiliate then you need to join the Twitch Affiliate Program if you can have these criteria fulfilled:
- Stream for at least 8 hours in the last 30 days.
- Steam on at least seven days in the last 30 days.
- Receive an average of three viewers per stream.
- And grow your audience to 50 followers and you are in.
Donations:
Donations are the oldest and easiest way to earn money from Twitch. It is when viewers donate money to streamers depending on their cause of donating!
Viewers can donate through BITs which are used as Twitch currency! A 1000bits costs $10 white 100bits costs $1.40 and 10,000bits for only $1.26.
Basically, buying higher bits costs you less than buying 1000 chunks! Vivers can donate through cheering options, chat or even outside of Twitch donations.
Merchandising:
You can also earn from customized merchandise. Selling your merchandise will also contribute towards your earning through Twitch!
You can use a print-on-demand service to sell your merchandise through Twitch. These can be mugs, caps, bags, t-shirts to phone cases or lip glosses.
Creating your merchandise will provide you with additional earnings from Twitch.
Sponsorship:
Sponsorship works just as Instagram influencers! Companies pay streamers to promote their brands and products. Such as gaming companies paying game streamers to stream and promote their games!
Streamers get paid from 1¢ to $1 per viewer per hour. Apart from the gaming industry, companies who sell other gaming and other equipment such as headphones, keyboards and so on also sponsor streamers to promote their products.
Tournament winnings:
You can also create a tournament between your viewers or even participate in tournaments to earn through Twitch! These tournaments are mostly in the gaming field but can be anything from gaming to life challenges!
Twitch bits:
Twitch bits are the currency used in Twitch. You can earn bits from your viewers. You can use these to cheer. When a streamer receives bits, they will be added to their channel account and can be withdrawn through a PayPal account!
Twitch Subscriptions:
Subscriptions will be the main income source when you grow your audience. Your viewers can subscribe to your channel to receive notifications about your activity.
There are three types of subscription which renews automatically:
- Tier 1: $4.99 per month (1 Subscriber Point)
- Tier 2: $9.99 per month (2 Subscriber Points)
- Tier 3: $24.99 per month (6 Subscriber Points)
Your viewers can either subscribe for FREE or use the tier version to support the streamers.
Free subs included limited access while tiers offered more options to advantages such as ad-free viewing, watch and chat during subscriber mode and even receive 10 custom emotes.
A steamer gets 50% of the subscription fee and the more subscribers mean more money!
Other income sources:
There’s another way that Twitch pays you, which through paying the streamer one cent when used in their chatroom. So they pay you with a PayPal account you have registered with.
While this is how to earn money Twitch, you may wonder how does twitch make money.
Well, it’s easy, so how does Twitch make money? Twitch earns mainly from integrated advertisements which Newzoo predicts Twitch will earn over $1.65 billion by 2021.
Twitch also earns through Twitch Prime Subscriptions which charge $4.99 per month, In-app purchases such as Twitch Bits which starts from $1.40, leveraging through Amazon and the NFL and live stream market competitions. And this answers how does Twitch make money!
If you are thinking of streaming then Twitch is the perfect place to get started.
Whether you enjoy gaming or inspired through lifestyles, Twitch has the viewers you are looking for. And by these Twitch guidelines, you will be able to set-up your Twitch platform easily!
FAQs
How much do small twitch streamers make?
How much do small twitch streamers make depends on what Twitch streamer type they use. An expert Twitch streamer can make up to $3000-$5000 each month. So a small Twitch streamer can make approximately $200-$300 with around 100 viewers.
What is Twitch Partnership?
Twitch Partnership is for the experts in the field who have a good amount of subscriptions and followers. This is for the top performers who are serious about making money through Twitch!
Are there any Twitch rules?
Yes, there are many Twitch rules as they stream online and they have to follow protocols to safeguard everyone in Twitch.
Author
An Entrepreneur and Digital Marketing Consultant in Sri Lanka. Helping People with Digital Marketing services, building an Online Business and making Passive Income.
